Spool Donkey

Sculpture #4

Carved in the shadow of the historic Chemainus waterwheel, this monumental sculpture now welcomes visitors to the centre of the community.

The carving is based on the first mural to be painted in Chemainus, Frank Lewis’ Steam Donkey At Work. The three dimensional cedar depiction shows the Dolbeer steam donkey, built in San Francisco in 1882. The engine was a concave drum on which the cable, held by the well-gloved hands of the “spool tender”, was wound, thus drawing the log from the woods. The cable was then retracted by a ‘horse line’.